About Me

When not nosing, tasting, drinking and reading about malt whisky, I own one of Israel's premiere boutique coaching practices, specializing in small businesses and executive teams.
Trained in the law, I was an international law attorney and took part in Israel's peace negotiations with the Palestinians, as well as representing my country at the UN for parts of the negotiations on the implementation of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court. Later I was appointed to the military bench.
My favorite thing, other than whisky, is teaching.
You can contact me through the social media buttons above or by email: michael(at)maltandoak.com, replacing the (at) with an @.

Statement of Integrity and Guidelines

Malt and Oak is an independent whisky blog, offering my own views, opinions and news from the world of malt whisky.
These are my guidelines:

1. All whisky reviews published are of whiskies I have personally tasted and noted. Guest bloggers only write about their own personal tastings.

2. With the exception of official whisky samples, I accept no consideration whatsoever from any distillery, bottler, distributor, drink company or store for my opinions.

3. I maintain strict impartiality and objectivity in tasting all whiskies, not least when tasting official samples. Any review of official whisky samples sent to me will be so noted in the post.

4. I will accept invitations to tastings, events and official visits, and full disclosure will be made on any tasting notes and articles resulting from these events or visits.

5. Any sample received over 30 ml in volume is shared with fellow whisky bloggers. In any event, no sample larger than 100 ml will be accepted.

6. No advertisements promoting specific brands will be accepted.

7. I will answer any inquiry by my readers as quickly and as fully as possible.

8. Should I give a link purchase the reviewed whisky, it will be given free of any commercial interest. The link given will always point to cheapest selling price I found on the web. No commission is paid, nor any other consideration given, for such link.

9. As of July 2017, I serve as Douglas Laing’s Israel brand ambassasdor. As such, I will obviously not be posting reviews of Douglas Laing products.

Bunnahabhain 1980 – ‘The Lucky Few Bottle’ 37 Years Old (41.5%)

There’s something very special about having your name on a bottle, and it’s even more special when it’s a cask you’ve been lucky enough to have bottled for you and your friends. This is now the second WFFA bottle, the previous being an Orkney 17 year old, and this is a great opportunity to give a shoutout of thanks to Iain Croucher of North Star, who found this cask and made this happen. The difference is that this one is one of the rarest old Bunnahabhain expressions around, with only 33 bottles yielded out of this cask.

But having your name on the label and this bottle in your cupboard is nothing compared to tasting it with great friends (two of whom have their name right there on the label with me). And so, on board Patrik’s beautiful boat, the Weranda, sitting on the water in Ekenäs, Finland, just before setting out for a weekend on the island of Halsholmen with other WFFA members from Finland, Henrik pulled out this stunning bottle, and we toasted the beautiful friendships whisky creates.

Photo Credit: Anders Malmsten

One other beautiful thing about this bottling is that it all 33 bottles will be opened and enjoyed, and they’ll all be enjoyed with friends. I think this is really what makes this bottle so special.

Appearance: Gold, the legs are thin and leave a lot of residue on the glass.

Nose: Freshly cut pineapple, honey, heather, white pepper, red apple peel and vanilla. Notes of freshly cut leaves and honeysuckle flowers. With time in the glass it gets even more floral. This is one to enjoy slowly.

Palate: Lightly sweet before a wash of spice and a fruity lightness, with a somewhat fizzy bitterness. The spice and the bitterness are a stunning combination.

Linger: White pepper and honey, with the spice sitting solidly around the gullet, with the pepper more of a black pepper down there. The oak comes out in the linger, showing the almost four decades in wood.

Conclusion

This bottle is a dangerous one to have open. It’s highly drinkable, and will probably lose its fill level far faster than is prudent given its rarity (only 33 bottles).